


Selfish

by anonymousstoryperson



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Avenger Loki (Marvel), Avengers team - Freeform, Loki Redemption, M/M, Trust, Whump, because I don't know how to write, writing prompts made this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-31
Updated: 2018-10-31
Packaged: 2019-08-09 04:37:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,505
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16443068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anonymousstoryperson/pseuds/anonymousstoryperson
Summary: Tony finds out someone isn't as selfish as they make themselves out to be





	Selfish

"Don't presume to know my motives, Stark. If I ever help you, know that I am definitely helping myself in the process."

Out of the many lies that Tony heard Loki spew, this was the one snippet of truth he had learned to take as gospel. Even when the trickster had joined them on an unofficial trial basis of 'one-chance-and-you're-gone' types, Tony knew better than to believe he had turned to the light out of the goodness of his reformed, alien heart. He remained stand-offish with the rest of the team from the off, and was a pain to be made useful if there wasn't something in it for him.

It was why even during the surprisingly entertaining talks they had in the labs he shared with Bruce, he didn't let his guard down fully and was careful with what information he let slip. It was why he tended to double check any information Loki gave the team with JARVIS, or Thor if it was alien crap, just to be sure he wasn't leaving out any details that might benefit him.

It was why, in the midst of yet another battle in the middle of New York, Tony hadn't really noticed it.

It was a messy one, to be sure. Doom had rebuilt his army from the last fight and improved it. They were still nothing compared to Tony's suits, but their numbers were dense, and even with the whole team chipping in, getting rid of them was a bit of an issue. 

Tony was dealing with a large group of them alone, only Loki nearby. The team was spread too thin for comfort, but with Thor making good progress towards Doom himself, that would only be an issue for a few minutes more. Hopefully. Luckily for him, the swarm that usually focused on Tony whenever it was Doom at the helm seemed to be a lighter load than usual, so maybe he'd survive without a trip to Medical this time.

So they continued to fight, Tony firing off repulsor blasts and missiles left, right and centre. He wasn't entirely sure what Loki was doing, but every so often green shimmers of what might be shields in his peripheral vision, closer than he expected it to given the distance between them, but he didn't really have the time to think on it. He'd have to wait until after the fight. 

Which came with a large blast of lightning a few locks away, which stilled the army with a jerky freeze and sent them into metal piles of advanced scrap.

 _"The army has been neutralised, sir."_ JARVIS' voice informed helpfully, cutting through the sudden silence around him.

A sigh of relief escaped him as he touched down again, looking at Loki, whose armour was spotless after the tell-tale light show that signalled magic use. Vain bastard.

"Wanna keep your shields to yourself next time?" he asked, flipping the faceplate up. "Or are you looking for more brownie points today?"

Loki only smiled dryly. "Obviously your knowledge of the craft is still lacking. Just because you cannot deal with threats as far out of your range does not mean you should accuse such skill as worry on your behalf."

So it had been offensive spells. He was doing it to show off. Tony would have rolled his eyes if he wasn't guilty of the same most days. "Don't worry. That's one thing I don't accuse you of. Wouldn't want your big brother to think you've really changed. Speaking of,"

His eyes were drawn upwards to see Thor flying over, Doom limp in one arm. Looks like they'd actually caught him this time. The rest of the Avengers were picking their way over the rubble to them as well.

"We all accounted for?" Steve asked the moment he was close enough. Though covered in rubble and dust, he seemed relatively unscathed.

"Bruce is still de-Hulking by Central Park, but it looks like it." Natasha answered just as Thor landed, "with an invited guest, too."

"SHIELD are on their way, they'll take Doom in." Clint added, looking at the super-villain, "Could you not have caught him like, two weeks ago? Save us all the trouble today?"

"Let's just be thankful he didn't get away again." Steve cut in, checking over everyone, then turning to Tony. "Has JARVIS got anything on the casualty count?"

Tony took in the information flooding his headset before responding. "The surveillance is still counting, but it's lower than we could usually hope for at this point, and the Stark Relief Foundation is almost here. They'll help with clean-up."

"Good. No injuries?"

"Doom's getting sloppy if he can't even land a hit this time." Tony grinned, "Hey, do you think the Chinese restaurant survived? I feel like celebratory take-out."

He turned to Thor, knowing he'd back him up on food options, but the god of thunder was focused on his brother.

Who was still here, instead of immediately leaving for the Tower after the fight.

Who hadn't said a single snarky word to anyone since the fight ended. 

Thor reached out a hand to him. "Brother are you-"

"Leave me be, you oaf," Loki stepped out of reach, rolling his eyes. "Norns, if I speak I am scolded and if I don't you suspect me. What would you have me do?"

Natasha frowned at the display, and snagged a small piece of debris from the pile beside her, tossing it in his direction.

It hit him, right on the shoulder, put it passed through an illusion to do so, which sparked on contact but still held.

"Loki, why an illusion?" Thor asked, tension in his words. "What are you hiding?"

"Thor-" he tried, but was interrupted.

"Look Grinch, we're taking a chance with you so it'd be better if you were straight with us. Lose the light show." Tony reasoned. Loki didn't make eye-contact with him like he did with Thor, but let the illusion drop.

He didn't look too different from the rest of the team- dusty from the debris, with minor scratches here and there.

And a gaping hole in the side of his armour, his arm holding it tenderly as his body bent in on it. The moment the illusion dropped, so did he, a gasp leaving him as his knees buckled.

"Shit!" Tony yelled, darting over and catching him just before he hit the ground. "We need Medical over here, now!"

"I'm fine." he protested faintly, trying to push him away, but there was no strength behind it.

"The blood on my paint job tells me otherwise, princess- what the hell happened?"

But he had already figured out what. That magic that always seemed nearby- it had been shields. Shields meant for him.

"Please tell me you were shielding yourself as well as me."

The whole not looking him in the eyes was becoming a pattern. 

"Damn it, Lo, why the fuck would you-"

"Stark," Thor, who was beside the both of them, interrupted, "Now is not the time. He must see a healer."

Tony looked up. SHIELD had arrived, already dragging Doom away, a Medical team running over. Swallowing thickly, Tony nodded and focused on the task at hand.

 

Later, when the team minus Loki was assembled in the tower, they went over the footage of the battle. It was clear from the off-set that the majority of the bots were converging on Tony's location. Tony watched as Loki covered him from the ground, sending up shields and defending himself at the same time. He couldn't even finish the footage before he turned it off, running both hands through his hair and leaning his elbows on the table.

"I'm an idiot," he berated, "We know Doom wants the reactor tech, and we know he sends me most of the bots to deal with. I should have realised something was off from the off. I even saw his damn shields coming way too close, how did I miss this?"

"I want to know why he's suddenly decided to be all self-sacrificing." Clint said from where he was standing.

Natasha raised an eyebrow. "Really? You haven't noticed the daily bitching contests they have way too much fun with? Or the magic vs science arguments that always end up in the lab? Or-"

"We get it, Nat." Steve interrupted, eyeing Tony. Natasha rolled her eyes but let it slide as he continued. "So I guess he doesn't hate everyone as much as we thought. Thor's going to have a field day."

"Tony, you know it wasn't your fault, right?" Bruce added in, stepping closer to his friend, "I mean, you can't blame yourself for focusing on the fight- it's what you're meant to do."

"But I thought I couldn't trust the guy!" he blurted, straightening up again, "I'd be comfy thinking he was a little Iago we all had to watch out for, and now..."

He trailed off, but stood up after a moment. No-one asked where he was going. It was pretty obvious.


End file.
